Give Me Direction, Give Me Life
by chivalry-is-dead
Summary: The Prophet of Truth is dead, the Halos are no longer a threat, and now there's only the Flood to worry about.  Things are looking up for the Master Chief, but when he has to train a new female Spartan, how's he gonna react to the strange girl?  MCXOC
1. Prologue

chiv-id: Yay, new story! I'm really stretching myself thin here...

Cortana: Indeed...

chiv-id: Where'd you come from?

Cortana: AI, remember? I'm here to help you write the story on your computer.

chiv-id: ...oh...well, how about doing the disclaimer?

Cortana: A pleasure:

Disclaimer: chiv-id does not own Halo, but she does own her new originial character, Angela. Read the prologue.

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Give Me Direction, Give Me Life

Prologue:

Name: Angela (sometimes called Angie by friends) Sanderson

Age: 22 years old

Relatives: None

Looks: Tanned brown skin, olive green eyes, wavy black hair with dark green highlights that bring out her eyes, well-muscled, lovely smile, hair goes down to the middle of her waist, enjoys wearing it down, flexible body, is about 6'1"

Personality: Really shy despite her strength and skill, modest, always looks up to everyone, looks to many for direction, finds strength in her friends, timid, docile, kind, doesn't like war, but does what she has to, to survive; comes into war for her family, killed before she ever got to know them at the age of 1; enjoys gardening and gymnastics, dislikes war, as said before, and people hurting her friends; shows skill in fighting and martial arts, even in weaponry, but detests war and fighting; has a natural talent for it despite her denial

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chiv-id: Okay, now the first chapter! Read the next one!

Cortana: She seems like an interesting girl...

chiv-id: Yeah, and she's gonna be your friend!

Cortana: ...


	2. Teacher

chiv-id: Yay, other chapter! Just starting this one off...

Angela: Hello, my name is Angela...

chiv-id: Yes, they read the prologue, they know your name.

Angela: Sorry...

chiv-id: ...ah, it's okay, disclaimer time?

Angela: What, oh, okay:

Disclaimer: chiv-id doesn't own Halo, but she does own me. Please begin.

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Give Me Direction, Give Me Life

Chapter 1: Teacher

Angela Sanderson couldn't help but feel nervous as she waved a good bye to her friends as she piled onto the transport, leaving behind those who had been raised with her waving back. Angela Sanderson was an orphan, her family killed at the age of 1, killed in a war and she had been the only one left alive. Angela grew up in an orphanage, making friends due to her shy and lovable nature, often performing many tasks whenever her friends were sad…that's the reason why she was on the transport shuttle.

'If I wasn't so shy…if I wasn't so…without direction…' she thought, thinking back to her childhood and up to now. When she was around the age of 5, she had already had quite a few friends and one of her best friends, by the name of Jehovah Slader, was crying one day. She had asked the small boy why he was crying, but he couldn't tell her because he was crying so hard. Angela tried comforting the boy, but it was now use. She finally got the idea of entertaining him, making him laugh. Spotting a wall, little 5-year-old Angela ran at the wall and ran up it with ease and then back flipped. Jehovah stopped for a second to stare. When Angela continued her back-flipping after her initial one on the wall, the boy began to smile and laugh. She stopped before the boy and bowed, smiling an adorable smile and then walked over to him, managing to find out that someone had teased him. After reporting the teasing to one of adults, Jehovah blabbed about her amazing acrobatic skills and all the kids asked her constantly to do some sort of amazing thing. Eventually, the adults began to notice her.

"Angela, please come here," Greg Buntz called one day, a 7-year-old Angela flipping towards the adult for her friends' happiness, stopping at his feet, "You've been doing this for a while…when did you learn gymnastics?" Angela merely told him that she taught herself it, then did a meditative pose as she sat on the chair next to him.

"And who taught you that?" Greg asked, Angela again telling him that she taught it to herself. Greg was astounded as she stood up on her seat, her eyes closed, stilling her entire upper body, and bending her legs so that she ended with her right leg under her on its tip-toes and her left stretched out behind her, like a figure skater. She opened her eyes and smiled calmly, slowly coming back to stand on the chair with both feet. Greg stared at her for a moment before taking her and dragging her over to the other adults who were a bit disturbed by Greg's enthusiastic demeanor. Upon telling them, Greg asked her to show her trick to them, obliging because she honestly didn't know what else to do. After, the adults seemed to whisper to each other on Greg's "discovery".

"Greg, we're going to appoint you to…keep an eye on this wonderful little girl," said counselor Harriet Monroe, getting up and pinching her cheek. Angela couldn't help but rub her cheek in complaint. From then on, Angela had been supervised every day from her childhood to her adulthood. He would occasionally give her little things, cards, tests, to prove herself, but her knowledge was average. On the other hand, when Greg asked her to hit something, perform a move, anything physical, there was almost nothing she couldn't do. Once, as a joke, when Greg actually asked her if there was something she couldn't do, she told him that she couldn't fly.

'Well...it's also because of Mr. Buntz I'm on this transport, too…' she thought again, the shuttle taking off. Shortly after she became 16, they had put her to work, like the other grown-up orphans, letting her tend the garden of her own volition. Angela loved the garden, in fact, she had brought with her a mini-garden pack in her suitcase…an odd thing to do, but it would comfort her on the space ship she was going to board. When Greg had seen her nothing more than an item, as Angela found out, which broke her heart. She was honest-to-god in love with her guardian, despite how wrong it sounded. He gave her direction when most wouldn't, giving her life when most couldn't. He had sold her to the army, literally, as a soldier, despite her docile personality. He saw the potential and he became a bit richer, greedily receiving the case of money after the men saw her and she was told to pack her things and go with them. And no matter how many times she tried, she couldn't bring herself to despise him. It just went against her nature.

'I can't hate him…even though I know I should…' she contemplated, walking away from the window to take a seat in the lobby of the shuttle, 'I'll miss everyone, I hope they'll be happy.' She lifted her head to the window across from her, looking out of the opposite window and seeing the ship coming into view. She felt sad, but didn't cry, felt lonely, but stayed away from the other people. Angela didn't know them, and it was in that moment that she wondered whether she'd ever get to know them. The war had killed her parents. Should she stay away to avoid any more hurt, as she had with Greg or her friends? Angela shook the thought away. She needed friends, she couldn't live without them, being the social girl that she was. Angela wanted to be surrounded by the warmth of people who cared about you and felt happy with. It was her way.

"_Estimated arrival: 10 minutes. Please gather your things and proceed to the entrance hall in the lobby. Thank you,_" an emotionless voice rang out over the lobby, the woman obviously not human. Angela did as she was told, gathering her things and walked to the entrance hall, seeing that she was the only one who actually had walked there. It seemed strange, yes, that a girl would obey something that was completely optional, yet, she explained it in her own thoughts and words, it was her way. Later, about 7 minutes later, people began scrambling to get to the entrance to be first, finding Angela just standing there patiently and with calm.

"_This is your designated stop: the _Blazing of Spring_. Thank you for taking _Nova Airs_, hope you had a great flight_," the woman's voice said, a bit cheerful this time, as if happy to kick them off the ship.

'Wow…this AI really wants us off her ship…' Angela thought, moving forward compliantly. She was flooded in with many of the people, some were here to visit their loved ones, others for educational reasons, some were even there for a vacation, but Angela knew one thing for certain: she was the only one to be a bought soldier on the ship. Angela trudged over and sat on a bench, officers and military personnel placed all along the walls and the stairs, watching and making sure there weren't any trouble makers or terrorists around. She was seated next to a particularly interesting fellow. This man wasn't in the usual army pants, shirt, and hat deal, no, he was dressed in a heavy suit and wore a green helmet with orange-yellow metal glass in the visor. Angela sighed, and stretched a little, looking around for someone, anyone to tell her where she should go. Glancing over to the standing soldier, armed with a MA5B Assault Rifle, holding the trigger with his right, keeping the weapon up with his left. He seemed like a statue, staring out into the mass of the crowd as if looking for something, like a watcher of the peace.

"Ahem…" she coughed, the soldier not moving, "Excuse me…" The man still didn't move and Angela sighed, rubbing her head a little bit. Finally, she stood up and walked next to him, tapping him on the shoulder, the man turning a bit stiffly towards her. She stifled a startled squeak, she cleared her throat again as she began to ask, a little intimidated by his 7-foot-stance and bulky exterior.

"Uh, my name is Angela Sanderson," Angela told him and that was all, instantly shutting up as the green-suited soldier turned toward her fully. He seemed to be judging her, looking her over as if to see whether she'd be good for anything, worth anything. When he was done, the man turned away from her and began walking away, his heavy foot steps echoing back to her. Angela swallowed and stood there a little confused, but the man stopped as soon as he found that she wasn't there and motioned her to follow him. Nodding, she ran back and picked up her things, running to keep up with the already moving soldier. She walked beside him, the soldier's strides matching hers so that she wouldn't fall behind. His rifle was low, but his hands were still in the same place they were, ready if trouble should arise. Angela was silent, as was he, down the corridor they went, and they ended up in the control room of the whole trip.

"Hmph, hey there John, I see you've brought Miss Sanderson," an older black man said, dressed in standard army uniform, even the cap, "I'm Sergeant Avery Johnson, I'm the ranking officer on this ship." Johnson held out his hand for her to shake and Angela shyly returned it, Johnson making a face at her timid nature. He shrugged it off however and walked along the catwalk, surveying the control room.

"We have a very tight schedule here on the _Spring_ and despite me wanting to just say 'screw the schedule', I can't disobey my orders," Johnson was handed a clipboard to monitor the situation, then gives it back to the person who handed it to him, "You have been enlisted into the army, as you know by now, and you will receive your instructions in about 2 hours. Now, if there are any questions, ask me now because as soon as we're done talking, I'm going to have to ship you off to your quarters and then promptly sit my ass down somewhere and just sleep. Questions?" Johnson had talked a bit too fast for Angela to digest all at once and when the man was finally done talking, Angela became a bit intimidated by the man's stare. She stuttered out a response.

"Do-does this ship have a…a bio-dome?" she asked, a bit uncertain of how to say 'garden' or 'place where I can go to put my plants'. He blinked and leaned back a bit away from her.

"A bio-dome, little lady? Well, I believe we have a place like that up top, use the elevator over there marked with the red arrows to get to it. We call it the Sanctuary," Johnson pointed over to the elevator with the red arrows decorating the frame of the doors, "It's called the Sanctuary because it's so peaceful and calm, normally used by the religious and other people who are too stressed and go there to relax. We grow plants and our own food up there, but it ain't substantial to keep everyone on this ship fed 24/7. But we try like hell because it ain't cheap to ship food here every month. Any more questions?" Angela shook her head and he smiled a bit.

"Now, I'm going to have John over here get you to your quarters," Johnson turned her around and she unintentionally dug her heels in as he pushed her over to the green soldier that was following behind a ways back, "John, I'm sure you know where she'll be staying." John seemed to just stare down at the smaller female, Angela looking up almost as if she were a child and was actually cringing a bit at his height and looks. John and Angela were just standing there, almost pressed together by Johnson until he broke them up, wondering if they were going to kiss.

"Now get you two, don't want to have to write you up on public affection," Johnson told them, chuckling as John instantly turned away and Angela just stood there, almost fainting, and she eventually got the courage to gather her things and follow the man. She walked down the cold corridors and many were staring at her as she followed the green soldier, his mask never once turning to her, even as she gave a small squeak after bumping into John when he suddenly stopped. He turned to the left and motioned to her that it was her room. Angela nodded and swiftly took out the card that she had received when the military came to inspect her abilities, fitting in the slot and the door opened. Angela was about to thank her guide when she found that he wasn't there.

'Okay…' she wondered, 'He doesn't seem very social…' She walked in and unpacked her things, changing from her long trench coat, magenta turtleneck, and black dress pants that hugged her hips to the other outfit she had bought with her money back when she was at the orphanage. It was a lovely white and spring green dress, light and hugging the curves only slightly, her friends telling her that it was a slightly alluring dress because it "made boys want to pull it tight and see what was really underneath". Angela sighed at the awkward memory, both at the comment and the knowledge that she may never see her old friends again.

'If I could wish for one thing, I'd like to be able to see my friends again some day,' she mourned a bit, before putting it on in the bathroom. The dress went to her thighs and went wonderfully well with the bronze skin shown beneath. The sleeves were cut up to the shoulder, reaching down to the middle of her upper arm. The only white part of the dress wrapped around her chest, a v-neck that went a little above her cleavage. She was dazzling, but that wasn't really the point. She had actually only bought it because she was going to do some planting in the Sanctuary and it was the only piece of clothing that look like it would be void of grass stains. Grabbing her gardening tools and her plant material, she pondered on whether a hat would be necessary. Shaking her head, Angela ignored it and went on her way. When she opened the door, however, she found someone that she hadn't expected to see. A woman with a sizable bust and practically naked was in front of her door and she gave a cute squeak as she jumped back. She sighed and put a hand on her heart however in relief as she realized it was an AI, projected on the small wires lining the walls of the corridors (chiv-id: if any of you have watched _I Robot_ with Will Smith, you'll know what I'm talking about).

"Hello Miss Sanderson," the AI greeted, floating slightly above the floor. Angela cocked her head a little as she observed the exterior of the hologram. She was blue all over, but her hair was a darker shade, the designs covering her more intimate areas a dark black. She was stunning, and would probably have been dating if human.

"I am Cortana, a current AI of this ship," she told Angela, the human girl nodding in understanding, "I have been told to keep you company until you are called…may I ask for which occasion are you dressed for?" Angela blushed and smiled softly.

"I'm going up to the Sanctuary…to do some planting," she told her, Cortana smiling back, "Would you like to come with me?" Cortana responded with a slight nod and moved out of the way for Angela to come out. Closing the door, Angela strolled with her new AI friend, Cortana engaging in a conversation with the sociable girl. The AI was honestly surprised, she normally wouldn't easily interact with humans, her only contact usually being John.

"And so, I came here, and I met that man dressed in the green suit named John," Angela finished her tale, "He doesn't seem to like me much, which is a bit sad, seeing as how he was the first person I met here on this ship."

"John? Do not worry, Master Chief is always like that," Cortana assured her and Angela looked at the holographic woman strangely.

"'Master Chief'?" she was puzzled, "What is a 'Master Chief'?" Cortana laughed a bit, but good-naturedly.

"You have much to learn about military if you are to become a soldier," Cortana informed her, "What made you wish to become a soldier?"

"Oh, well, I-" Cortana cut her off as she opened the doors for Angela, Angela getting in and marveling at the elevator's intricacy. Cortana promptly seemed to vanish and the doors closed on a startled Angela. Angela blinked before frowning, her friend having disappeared on her, but was startled again when she heard her voice.

"There are no holo-wires in the elevators, forgive me if I offended you," Cortana's voice rang out in the elevator, Angela shaking her head and smiling again. As they reached the bio-dome, the Sanctuary, Angela saw Cortana in her holographic form once again and they searched until a suitable spot was found. Angela set up her small garden and Cortana watched with patience and curiosity, observing Angela's skilled green-thumbs preparing the soil and then pushing the seeds in. Angela put them in a sunny place and smiled, dusting off her knees with her gloved hands. Angela resembled something of a child, kneeling and peering up at the AI with a glowing smile, her black-green hair gently waving around as the simulated wind blew about her. This was as Master Chief found her, staring at Angela and his other holographic friend.

"Oh, Master Chief, John, I hadn't noticed you there," Cortana said, her form bending back up and turned to greet the green armor-clad man, "Angela has shown me the secrets of having 'green-thumbs'." Angela smiled a bit apologetically, having told her that planters with skill had "green-thumbs", a silly term which Angela regretted having told Cortana. Master Chief just stood there, then came over and loomed over the kneeling gardener's body, terrifying Angela a bit. She stood up quickly and backed up towards her new friend, actually hiding behind Cortana like a child. Cortana was a bit confused by this action and her head spun to stare at Angela before turning back to Master Chief with a smile, understanding Angela's dilemma.

"John, you can never make a friend without first scaring them, can you?" Cortana admonished the Spartan, her laughter light and she moved forward, Angela staring at Master Chief with wide eyes through Cortana, "Angela, don't worry, he will not hurt you. He has never hurt a friend or an innocent." Angela nodded a bit nervously, coming from behind Cortana to stand beside her. Oh how Angela wished she could hold Cortana's hand! She had always been babied by Greg, her previous caretaker, and despite how childish it had made her feel, Angela missed that comfort in touch.

"Does Sergeant Johnson want her?" Cortana asked, being the only talkative one in the dialogue, John nodding, "Well, then it is with reluctance that I leave you for more dire matters at hand Angela. Farewell." With that, the AI blinked out of existence and Angela gave a silent "bye", mouthing it while going up next to the intimidating Spartan. She walked behind him as usual, but when he slowed down to walk beside him, she was confused. Angela slowed her own pace and he did the same, his head turned towards her as if observing her, measuring her up once more. Frankly, it was creeping her out.

"Is there…something on my face?" asked Angela, a bit shyly. Master Chief turned his head back, but then turned back to her again as his left hand left his gun to wipe a smear off her face. Blushing heavily, she quickly ran a hand over her profile to see if she had anything else currently on it. Master Chief replaced his hand back on his weapon and continued onward, speeding up a little and going back to being in the lead. Angela followed behind silently and was still blushing as she saw Johnson approach her.

"Miss Sanderson, lovely dress you got on there," he remarked, Angela shifting around a little uncomfortably and blushing, "Too bad it's gotta come off." At this, her head shot up and she stared at him with wide eyes.

"Here, standard issue military uniform, just your size, too," Johnson handed her the clothes, "Now go on, try it out, you gonna need it." Johnson shoved her towards the lockers and it was then that she realized that Master Chief had brought her to a gym. She changed quickly, folding the dress and putting it to the side of the room before rejoining the two men. Angela was now wearing a black tank top with a tight camo, green military jacket, matching shorts rolled up to the middle of her thighs, and black compact boots. It wasn't something she'd be comfortable wearing on a day-to-day basis, but she sucked it up, used to doing things she didn't want to do. Johnson nodded approvingly, Master Chief just giving a little tilt of his head.

"Now, here's what's going to be happening for today, even though you just got here," Johnson informed both persons, "John, you'll be her mentor, and Angela, you'll be his pupil. I want you two to train together, or more understandable, if you show her around the ropes, John." Angela's eyes widened at Johnson's words, her eyes darting between the Master Chief and Johnson, Johnson smiling while Master Chief was emotionless as ever.

"_You've got to be kidding me, Johnson,_" was the first phrase Master Chief had uttered since she got there, his voice slightly robotic from his suit. Angela couldn't agree more as she fell, fainting at the thought of being taught by the most intimidating person on the ship. Johnson could only sigh and pat Master Chief on the shoulder as he saw her fall.

'This is gonna take some work on your part John, just don't be too harsh on the girl,' Johnson thought, kneeling over the girl and picking her up, depositing her into Master Chief's unsuspecting arms. The gun clattered on the floor as Johnson easily tossed the light-weight to Master Chief, his posture seeming outraged and disbelieving. That was how Johnson left the two to train, an unconscious little girl and a flustered veteran Spartan holding onto her.

* * *

chiv-id: Well, wasn't that an interesting start to this series?

Angela: (still knocked out, Master Chief shaking her)

Master Chief: ..._Is she supposed to do this?_

chiv-id: Yeah...she gets like that when she's feels too stressed out...well, just keep shaking her and I'll just ask for some reviews. Reviews people, I need 'em!

Master Chief: ...(drops her and walks away)

chiv-id: Master Chief!

Master Chief: (walks in with a bucket of cold water) _I'm getting tired._

Angela: (water dumped) Ack! (splutters, looks at Master Chief and faints again)

Master Chief: ..._I'm going to need more water..._


	3. Bought

chiv-id: Hello readers! Here's the next chapter to my MCXOC story!

Angela: Um...I'm more scared of him than I like him right now to be honest...

Master Chief: ...

Angela: Oh...sorry...

chiv-id: Well, great way to start off guys!:

Disclaimer: chiv-id doesn't own Halo, but she does own Angela! On with the story!

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Give Me Direction, Give Me Life

Chapter 2: Bought

"Hey John," Johnson greeted, seeing Master Chief walk into his office, "I see that you've returned from an eventful day." Master Chief just sat in a chair and took off his helmet, revealing a pale face with dark blue eyes staring at him intently. The black hair that fell over his eyes as he stared at Johnson only made him seem more threatening.

"Oh, now don't give me that look!" Johnson scolded him as if he were a child, "You need a partner! Besides, you know that you can't do this mission by yourself, soldier!" Master Chief leaned back with the same stoic expression, still glaring, still cold. Johnson sighed, but got up and put his hands on the desk in front of him.

"John…" he began, "You know that I would never force this upon anyone! Honest to god! The government told me the girl had offered herself, which surprised me just to say the least! She's old, I know, and the orders are to put her through…augmentations…as soon as she's able enough…" Master Chief's eyes widened as he stood, outraged at his last comment. Johnson understood and only sighed.

"John, stand down," Johnson ordered, Master Chief complying a few moments later stiffly, "Now, I have told you, I would never force this upon anyone. So, we are going to ask the girl, that much the government said I'd be allowed to do. She will know and she will decide whether she'd want to stay or not. At least she has a choice in the matter. Fate seems to smile upon us with this girl, seeing as how talented the boys assessed her to be." Master Chief slowly put his helmet back on, standing up and walking away mildly satisfied. Johnson only sighed and sat back down in his chair, exhaustion running over him from the day. She was only accepted in today and she was already giving him headaches…or more specifically Master Chief giving him headaches. He knew the guy didn't want anyone else to be put through, seeing as how he was the lucky few who made it out alive. With only one more girl in the program…odds weren't good that she'd survive. Said girl was still in the gym, sitting cross-legged on the floor to attain peace.

'Breathe in…' Angela breathed in, 'And breathe out.' As soon as she let out her breath, Cortana rematerialized in front of her again. She let out a yelp and fell backwards, her feet entangling themselves and was stuck in the position as she tried rolling to her front. Cortana couldn't help but smile at the situation.

"Sorry, you scared me," she apologized, finally getting her feet untangled, "It's good to see you again, Cortana!"

"I am glad to see you as well," Cortana greeted, her form floating to kneel above the ground, "It has been a long day for you I imagine."

"Well, actually, I fainted for a whole hour before I woke up. I got scared by Master Chief again and well…there went another hour…" Angela said, rubbing the back of her head a little ashamedly, "When I finally got used to him, I got so nervous I back-flipped on my head and got knocked out…I'm sure he thinks I'm a total weakling klutz…" Cortana now was smiling again and was laughing a little.

"Do not worry," Cortana assured her, "Once you can show John what you can do, I'm sure you'll be fine! Now, why don't you show me? I would love to see what you can do!" Angela's face lit up as she heard the words, eager to prove herself. Angela rose and did another breathing exercise before doing a couple of back flips before ending in a huge leap that had her twisting twice before touching back down. Cortana was smiling at Angela's enthusiasm, Angela doing cartwheels and front flips all across the gym floor. It seemed as if she were a bundle full of energy, Angela suddenly charging from one end to the other and running up the wall before back flipping off and continuing to back flip.

"That was marvelous!" Cortana exclaimed, Angela bowing after her performance, "Where did you learn that?"

"I taught myself when I was five and I got better at it from there," Angela panted a bit, wiping her brow before coming over to her holographic friend, "I used to cheer up a lot of kids with my tricks. That is…until I was sold…" Angela's tired smile withered away into a nostalgic frown, thinking of the friends she had left behind at the orphanage. Cortana's eyes widened at the last word and Angela turned and cocked her head at her.

"Sold?!?" Cortana burst forth, scaring Angela out of her wits. She gave a timid nod of her head, afraid that she might have said something wrong. Cortana's form was now seemingly blinking in and out, the edges of her form turning jagged and spiked, her eyes a dark blue burning with rage. The ship seemed to shudder, everyone looking up and then at Cortana if they were in the gym. Cortana was pretty upset and she blinked out of existence, Angela looking around her shakily as she felt the ship calm down. Meanwhile, Master Chief was looking up from his room, seeing the low-hanging light shake from the disturbance. He immediately headed for the control room, as did Sergeant Johnson, both concerned that something was attacking the ship. All they found were a few cowering ship mates and a supremely pissed off Cortana.

"Johnson…" she said in a dangerously calm tone, "Sold…?" Johnson honestly had no idea what she was talking about. Cortana flew at him, her holographic nose almost touching his own.

"Oh don't think you don't know…" Cortana warned, still in his face, "You bought her and deceived the rest of us!" Master Chief instantly felt his own heart inflame, but he was still a soldier and calmed down, stepping towards the two. Cortana backed down.

"Bought her? The boys said the girl came of her own free will!" he roared back, raging at his own gullibility, "Those son of guns, they lied to me! My own government lied to me!" Johnson was now fuming, having not realized the truth. Angela was shyly going back to the control room, feeling guilty and wondering if they had truly known that she was bought. She should have never told her…

"I can't believe it! Bought! Bought!" Johnson was yelling, angry at the injustice, having being fooled by the system again, "And I was an idiot enough to believe that she came on her own! Girl too sweet to be such a thing!" Angela felt guilty as she entered, timidly stepping out of the shadows and Cortana turned to her.

"Why didn't you tell us?" asked Cortana gently, coming over to her.

"I…I thought you knew…" Angela replied softly, biting her lip, "After all, I'm just an orphan…" Cortana looked at Angela sadly, then turned back to Johnson in expectance.

"Her report said she came from a well-known family! Served in the war," claimed Johnson, to which Angela answered.

"Yes…they did," Angela spoke up, the attention now turned back to her, "That's…that's how they died…" Everyone seemed silent at the revelation.

"I…I don't like wars…nor do I like violence…" Angela said in a whisper, "But if I have to…" To this Cortana shook her head.

"Well, at least it's not anything like that," Cortana explained, Angela's head tilting upwards to look at her, "You have a mission with John."

"Master Chief?" Angela questioned, turning her head over to Master Chief.

"Yes, you may have to fight, but I'm sure it will be minimal," Cortana assured her, trying to calm her own nerves down, "Johnson?"

"Ahem…" Johnson coughed, "Angela, before I continue, I need to ask you something…" Angela nodded and Johnson gave a small sigh.

"In order to go on this mission with John, you're going to have to endure the Spartan II program. It was designed by the very woman who made Cortana. Now, I first thought you wanted to go of your own will, and that everything was explained to you, but…it seems I have to tell you everything now…"

"Well…they did say something about lost Spartans…" Angela said, surprising all three friends, "I overheard them when they were talking to my caretakers. They told them that I'd be in a dangerous mission to search for the lost Spartans…I thought that I was going to be sent to look for a place…"

"No, people," Johnson corrected, "See this old dog here?" Johnson went over to Master Chief and slapped a hand on Master Chief's shoulder, earning him a cold glare.

"This is a Spartan," Johnson explained, "He was in a program that trained him to be a soldier and an outstanding one at that. Now, there have been rumors that there are some freeze-dried Spartan men and women out there, some that have been trained before, but were stuck in cryo-stasis. They've never been discovered until now." Angela nodded.

"We first heard of this rumor when some of our excavating teams recovered several transports, filled with a lot of empty spaces where cryo-tubes should have been. They found a couple of cryo-tubes left, with people inside…they were Spartans from the Spartan II program. No one knew that the good old doctor had ever conducted more experiments and succeeded, but there was the proof. The cryo-tubes were already cracked from trying to launch from their spaces, so it killed the Spartans inside from the lack of oxygen…and the massive vacuum that crushed them…" Angela gulped at this, but continued to listen, hoping she wouldn't have to suffer a fate as gruesome as that.

"We have reason to believe that there are now approximately perhaps as much as 30 Spartans still floating around, calculating the probability that the 80 empty slots we found that belonged to 80 Spartans would still be in cryo and still alive. Master Chief himself offered to volunteer, as usual, but I ordered that he'd need a partner. That's where you come in." Angela blinked and nodded, Johnson coming over and resting both of his big hands on her shoulders. Angela felt that the hands were almost like the burden she was receiving. She looked at the Master Chief out of the corner of her eye. She was going to help him look for more of his kind, hope that there was more than just him that had survived. Angela felt even more nervous.

"Again, in order to be able to help the Master Chief, you're going to have to go through the same process Master Chief went through. It'll be brutal, it'll be rough, and at the end, you might not even survive," Johnson told her, Angela nearly collapsing from the news had not Johnson kept her up with his hands, "You don't have to do this if you don't want to. We can help you get somewhere safe, or you can stay on this ship if you'd like. You can't go back to the orphanage, but you can stay here or somewhere else to hide from the government. I don't want to have to force this on you, little lady, now, do you accept or do you want to turn this down?" Angela turned fully to Master Chief, who seemed to just stand there and stare back, as if daring her to say yes. Angela's eyes turned to ones of understanding, surprising Master Chief as she turned back to Johnson and responded.

"I…I accept this responsibility," Angela told him softly, looking into Johnson's startled black eyes, "I want to help the Master Chief. I wish to prove myself worthy…"

"Girl," Johnson ran it by her once more, "You don't have to prove anything. Remember you have a choice." Angela gave a soft chuckle as she stared up at the sergeant once more.

"Since the day I began making people laugh with my back flips," she said to him, "I never had a choice. I need a purpose, a life, and I believe that this is it." With that, Angela left, her eyes almost emotionless as she left with Cortana following after her, trying to discourage her. Master Chief stood there shell-shocked, though he looked unfazed from the outside. Johnson put a hand on his friend's shoulder, Master Chief turning to look down at Johnson.

"See…" Johnson said, "You ain't so different from her after all…" He left Master Chief standing on the cat walk above the control room, the hustle and bustle filling the once silent room. Master Chief contemplated the situation before him, thinking of the strange girl who said that she had no choice…just as he had no choice…

"Angela, you don't have to do this…" Cortana pleaded, floating in front of Angela as Angela walked to her room, "John may be a hard one to impress, but I'm sure he was impressed by the speech! You don't have to do this!" When Cortana had first met the Master Chief, she accepted him as the cold and battle-hardened man that he was today. After meeting Angela as how she naturally was, she wondered if she could barely handle having an Angela as devoid of emotion as Master Chief was.

"It's alright…" Angela said to Cortana smiling, "I never had much purpose, except to make people happy. And what…and what I want most in the world right now is to make Master Chief happy." Cortana stopped and stared at Angela before staring at nothing as the girl walked through her. Angela herself stopped looking back at Cortana.

"It's a noble goal," Cortana admitted, "But you realize that putting yourself through the program may kill you, right? And I am sure that that would make Master Chief more sad than happy." Angela had to think for a moment and Cortana smiled, basking in her smart logic before it all came crashing down when Angela spoke.

"Master Chief doesn't know me and therefore he would not miss me," Angela told her, "Perhaps, if I survived, I'd get to know him more. After all, if I become a Spartan, I shall be like him. He will have someone to relate to, and from my perspective, I think that will make him happy. I will know his pain." Cortana was stumped, how was she supposed to answer to that?

"Don't worry," Angela said, "As long as someone needs to be cheered up, I won't die. It's my purpose." She turned on her heel and walked back to her room, leaving a dumbfounded Cortana in her wake.

"Your purpose…" Cortana murmured before disappearing, her voice echoing almost unearthly across the now empty halls of the ship, the clocks all indicating that it was night now, "I hope you really believe that, Angela, I really do…" With that, Cortana went to sleep with the rest of the people on board, except for a disturbed Master Chief, who was puzzled by the mystery of this one girl.

'Since the day you did back flips…' he thought, turning over on his side to lay his head to rest on the pillow, 'Just as I did…when I thought I was just special…I didn't have choice either…' Master Chief fell into a sleep of dreams and has-beens, reliving his boyhood days before he had been taken away, when he had a family, a real one. It was there that Master Chief found true solace, and when he finally fell into the deepest part of his dreams; a smile finally came out on the usually cold and emotionless face.

* * *

chiv-id: Aw...wasn't that slightly heart-warming?

Angela: At least I had friends when I was five, he didn't even get to have a normal childhood...

Master Chief: (still sleeping)

chiv-id: Damn right, now take off his helmet and then draw some doodles on his face! I'll get my camera! These will be great for blackmailing!

Angela: What?

chiv-id: Fine, never mind...well, might as well ask the readers for reviews. Reviews! I need them!


	4. Worthy

chiv-id: Okay, haven't updated this one in a while either...phew...

Angela: Good evening, chiv-id, I thought you'd never update!

MC: ...

chiv-id: (sweatdropping-MC's poseintimidation) Hm, yeah, sorry 'bout that, uh, disclaimer?

Disclaimer: chiv-id doesn't own Halo or anything like that, but she does own Anglela.

chiv-id: (staring at MC) ...Don't kill me?

* * *

Give Me Direction, Give Me Life

Chapter 3: Worthy

Master Chief stood outside of her door the next day, waking up at 5:30 as usual, then getting to her room at 6:00. He waited for a while, until Cortana found him.

"Morning John," she said, "Waiting for our newest family member?" Master Chief actually had to think about her words, "family member". She had accepted to become a Spartan, though there was little chance that she'd survive and that she said that she had wanted to prove herself to him. He almost chuckled at the thought of the young thing, feeling the need to prove herself. Master Chief didn't think her a family member, but knew that Cortana must have accepted her. The door opened before Master Chief, revealing a very sleepy Angela in a white silky night gown that went to her knees and showed her figure. If not for her hair, once in a pony tail, sticking out almost any old way and barely inside the band, she would have made mouths drop. She rubbed her eyes before bumping into Master Chief's chest, causing her to look up and squint.

"Good morning, sunshine," Cortana giggled, "I see you've never been much of a morning person either." Angela gave a sleepy acknowledgement as she turned her head before trying to walk forward again. After the second battle between her head and Master Chief's chest, she fell backwards and finally shook her head. Getting rid of some of the drowsy effects, Angela's eyes widened to see Master Chief standing before her and she instantly stood up, apologizing.

"Sorry, sorry!" she muttered repeatedly, pulling herself up. Master Chief turned away and stepped out of her way, giving her access to the hallway to which she gladly dashed out and ran to the showers, a change of clothes tucked in her arms. She began blushing, wondering if she'd ever look like a normal person to Master Chief.

"She's a nice girl," Cortana said before muttering sadly, "I'm going to miss her personality, it really was making the ship a happier place for me." Master Chief turned to her for a second, understanding Cortana's woes, but if Angela really wanted to go through with this…

"I'm finished!" Angela said, her army clothes just a bit damp and her hair dripping at the ends, the green highlights blending with the regular black to make it look as if she had regular black hair, "I'm really sorry, I set my alarm clock to earlier, but I slept in! I'm really, really sorry!" Cortana couldn't help but put on a bright smile.

"It's all right, really," Cortana told her, "Now, I think you need a bit more drying up to do." Angela nodded hurriedly, pulling a towel out of the bundle of clothes and quickly drying her hair with it while rushing back into the room to look more decent. Master Chief just barely looked at her, realizing that the area that was wet was her breasts and her…ahem…

"John?" Cortana floated before him and he snapped back to reality, "It seems that you are thinking of Angela, am I right? Angela is fine young girl, pretty, too. I would not hold it against you if you grew…attracted to her…" Master Chief just turned his head stiffly in a slight 'no', though Cortana gave a smart-ass smirk. He felt a small buzz in the back of his helmet and he growled at her, Cortana's form zipping into his helmet and out again in a flash.

"Then why do my readings indicate that blood flow is rushing down to your-" Master Chief shot a hand out over her mouth, his appendage roughly making the hologram blink out for a second before coming back with an ever-grinning Cortana. Sometimes Master Chief wondered if having a slot in his helmet for Cortana's storage and use was a good idea. Angela walked out, the towel vigorously trying to make the wet spots over her intimate parts go away. In the end, Angela made the part between her legs go away, but the spot between her breasts was still mildly noticeable. Master Chief gave a quick glare, unnoticed by Angela, over to Cortana who got the message and zipped her lips, though she gave a sly smile over to Angela who only blushed. She thought Cortana was smiling at her cleavage spot.

"Come, I believe it's time for training," Cortana told her, giving an uncharacteristic giggle as she again floated near Master Chief and looked around inside of the helmet on his vitals, "I'm sure John will be happy to get something done." Master Chief only walked on, though keeping a close eye and ear on the conversation between the two females.

"I'm such a dunce sometimes…" Angela sighed, whispering over to Cortana, "I forgot to wipe myself off and then I had to take my clothes off again…such a waste of time!" Cortana couldn't help but smirk as Master Chief's head swiftly turned straight forward again, his head being turned to listen just in case Cortana told Angela about the…'problem'…

'That'll teach him not to listen…' thought Cortana, turning back to Angela.

"Listen, the training program…like Johnson said, it isn't easy and you might even die. There is a possibility that you may lose yourself on the way…become emotionless and your soul could _die_. That's why the Elites had called the Spartans demons…" Cortana told Angela who looked down with a worried look, "I just wanted you to know that and no matter what, keep fighting to stay just the way you are. You have a wonderful personality; it would be a true shame to lose such a thing." Cortana let the information sink in, Angela's sad frown showing that she was contemplating the matter seriously. Angela turned to Cortana again as she left her eyes emotionless.

"I'm not afraid of losing myself," Angela shot back, Cortana blinking in response, "Because as long as I have friends, I can always find myself again." Cortana gave a small smile at her friend's optimism, but she truly feared for Angela.

"_Weights…_" Master Chief said in a monotone voice, both girls turning to Master Chief in confusion, "_Go to the weights first…we need to assess your strength._"

"Oh…o-okay…" Angela said, trying to imagine herself like Master Chief and ultimately failing, "Um…I've lifted almost 3 bags of soil once…really big ones…" Master Chief just stared at her, making her gulp.

'God, that sounded really stupid…' she thought, sighing as she went over to the weights and the men marines turned to look, 'Why are they staring? Oh, forgot about that thing…' She looked down at her breasts and the mild wet spot was still their, resting between her cleavage and she put a hand shyly over the spot, blushing. She went over to a set of weights and Master Chief stood before her, putting his gun down for once and picked up a medicine ball, one that weighed about 10 pounds. It was easy for him and tossed it over to Angela who caught it with an 'oof'.

"Um…I'm not pregnant…" she said, looking at the ball in her hanging arms and then she looked up to see the marines snickering at her and she blushed again, "I missed the point again…didn't I?" Master Chief just stood there and he motioned for the ball back after a small while. She lifted it up and threw it back easily, Master Chief then picking up another medicine ball, only 25 pounds heavy instead of 10. Master Chief threw it and it took a little more breath out of her as she caught it, hitting her in the gut. She winced but smiled as Cortana came over to check her.

"I'm…I'm fine," she assured Cortana who smiled and backed off, "Um, here you go…" She lifted up with a little more effort and threw it back, Master Chief catching it in one hand. Angela was amazed, it took both her hands to catch the thing. Master Chief finally grabbed up a 40 pound medicine ball, still only using one hand. She was a bit nervous, but she shook her head and then nodded as she readied herself. He threw it and she caught it, but went off-balance and stumbled and fell on her ass.

"Sorry…" she mumbled, getting up and rubbing her back side tenderly, "I don't normally throw around balls that are so…" The marines started laughing and Cortana scoffed, chastising them after a little while on their manners. Angela just stayed silent and looked down, feeling so embarrassed and blushed heavily. She was surprised as she felt heavy hands come down upon her shoulders, looking up to Master Chief. He gave a slight nod and put the fore-knuckle of his right hand under her chin and tapped it up slightly. She blinked at first and then smiled in compliance.

"Ok, keep my chin up, got it!" Angela replied, Master Chief giving another slight nod, "Um…wanna try again?" Master Chief picked up the 40-pound medicine ball and turned to look at Angela who was in a meditative pose. Master Chief cocked his head for a moment at the position, Angela was sitting on the ground, Indian style, her hands in fists and together. Her eyes opening to reveal calm jade eyes, somewhat dimmed, and she slowly pulled her fists away and then they dove between her legs, lifting her body up in the Indian style position. Angela unfurled her legs in the position and her legs unnaturally reached over her head to land in front of her. The rest of her followed shortly until she was in a bridge position, her fists and feet the only thing connected to the mat. Finally bringing herself into a standing position, she gave a slight nod and he tossed it, Angela catching it in one hand, closing her hand around it and not giving an inch. She then threw it back like before and Master Chief picked up the next one after, around 55 pounds this time. Master Chief planned on only going to 85 pounds, feeling that it would wear the girl. Again, she caught it with one hand, not moving, her hand throwing it back like nothing. When he did come to 85 pounds, he hefted it towards her with more strength then he had wanted to do, but watched nonetheless and found that she had caught it once more with one hand.

"John, I think we have ourselves a winner!" Johnson commented, breaking through the ring of crowding marines and they scattered in the presence of their commander, "Well done, even I don't have that much control!" Johnson slapped a hand on her back, making her lose her concentration and she fell forward, Johnson chuckling at the sight. She got up and smiled at him, the healthy luster back in her eyes shining.

"Now, I just want to tell you the program's accelerated schedule," Johnson said in a low voice, "I have to warn you, since you are technically old enough to have the augmentations, the training will be swifter than normal, which means that John, you will have to teach her all about weapons in about a week." Master Chief just stared at Johnson, who nodded as he answered to the swift head turning.

"Yeah, I know. The government, even though I hate them right now, ordered her to be prepped as quickly as possible. Just be glad I got you the week and not the 3 days they really wanted," Johnson told them, Angela's eyes widening a bit.

"Sir," Angela spoke up, "I just want to know, what are augmentations?" Johnson sighed as he grabbed her shoulders.

"Physical enhancements, girl, and they ain't pretty. You may have scars for the rest of your life and they're brutal. Let's just say I warned you and that I am definitely open to hiding you away if you get the feeling that you don't want to," Johnson was again trying to discourage her and Master Chief couldn't really blame him. The horrors he had to face when he had the augmentations were nightmarish things, the screams before he had to go up, the ones that always had pleaded with the scientists to stop, it had frightened him and was still fresh in his mind. When it was finally his turn…

"No…you'll not sway me in the least, sir," Angela said, with another emotionless face, "Please…I can do this." Johnson admitted that she was a pretty tough cookie, but once the augmentations began, no matter how painful, the procedure had to be followed through. He hoped she really meant her words and gave a resigned sigh.

"If that's the way it's gonna be, then I'll leave you two to training," Johnson said as he turned, waving the rest of the marines back into line. Cortana floated over and departed with him, leaving Angela alone with the Master Chief. Angela closed her eyes and truly thought about how her life was going to be like if she really did go through with the Spartan II training. Would she live? Would she die? Would she end up paraplegic or with some sort of deformity that would haunt her for the rest of her life? She shook her head to rid her of her thoughts; an optimistic view suited her better.

_"You're willing…?"_ asked Master Chief, bringing her back to reality. Casting a surprised look over to him, Angela blinked and nodded slightly. He turned away, looking after Cortana and Johnson, Angela staring as she wondered what had brought on a question like that.

_"Then come with me_,_"_ Master Chief spoke again, walking away. Angela followed him, trailing behind him with a pensive look. Master Chief was an enigma to her, a puzzle that couldn't be solved. Angela was never good with puzzles.

_"Look here…"_ Master Chief alerted her to a small open room, no door, filled with small plaques, the only thing that covered the bare white room. She looked up to Master Chief, who nodded her in. Traveling in the small maze, she saw that each name had a small "S-II" and a 3-digit number attached at the end. Angela's eyes grew moist as she saw odd little notes on the sides of the plaques, labeling them either as "failure" or "KIA". Those who were "failures" were considered no more than experiments, those who were "KIA" had received little commemoration for their efforts. Not a single flower was seen, the small cups that once held water, ready for flowers, were now bone dry and dust had already over taken them. The Spartan II soldiers were not considered human: they were considered experiments, servants to the war that had been going on since the time they were brought into the program.

'Would I…be treated this way, if I were to die?' Angela mourned slightly, touching each plaque as if to give comfort to their dead souls. Master Chief watched stoically, noticing the tears that threatened to spill and her gentle caresses of the memorial plaques. Master Chief was letting her experience the injustices of being a super-soldier, of being a Spartan, and was helping her to understand what kind of life she would have if she followed through.

"Are these all Spartans?" she whispered, though she knew the answer. A slight nod from Master Chief made those tears fall, her gentle soul sympathizing with the dead ones. She pulled a flower that she had kept in her pocket and laid it down at one particular plaque, a girl by the name of Rowenna, the youngest to die in the program.

"Excuse me," Angela said quietly, exiting out of the room and walking back to her own. Master Chief looked after her as she walked away, turning back and staring at the simple yellow daffodil that she had procured from her pocket. A simple sympathy gesture, yet it meant a lot more to him as he noticed a glittering salty tear that reflecting the white light in the bare white room of the Spartan-II memorial.

* * *

chiv-id: God, I had like no brain power for this one, but I got it eventually!

MC: ...

chiv-id: ...(to Angela) Is he gonna kill me?

Angela: He always looks like that...but I always thinks that he's gonna shoot me...so, can't really say...

MC: **I would never shoot you.**

Angela: How about chiv-id?

MC: **...I'm thinking about it...**

chiv-id: (sweatdrops) Well, guess we should zip outta here, so see ya! Reviews!


	5. Monster

chiv-id: Okay, haven't updated this story in a while...

Angela: Hello! I see this chapter is a bit longer than the others...

chiv-id: Yeah, well, this is one of the biggest events in your life, so...

Angela: I see...

chiv-id: Besides, someone threatened me that if I didn't update, they'd get Master Chief to kill me, then bring me back to life, then kill me with an energy sword, then bring me back to life, then kill me with a gravity hammer...

Master Chief: ..._What?_

chiv-id: Yeah, just do me a favor...DON'T LISTEN TO THAT PERSON!!

Disclaimer: chiv-id doesn't own Halo or anything, but she does own Angela. Begin!

* * *

Give Me Direction, Give Me Life

Chapter 4: Monster

"Today's the day Angela…" Sergeant Johnson told her, Angela turning wide-eyed, "Remember, you always have an option." Angela shook her head, still determined to go through with the training program, though her courage dwindled with each step towards the experimentation room. Angela was trembling with fear on the inside, but managed to keep her composure.

'This is worst part…after this, cruising,' she reminded herself, 'You've worked pretty hard to get to this point, Angela, don't back out now.' It has only been a week and a half, but she had been practicing with the Master Chief for the entire time and it's been pretty rough. Sparring was probably the worst, but at least he'd silently encourage her every time he beat her. A thousand pounds of man and armor against a girl didn't seem very fair.

'It didn't feel very fair, either,' Angela thought, her whole body still feeling achy after the unintentional body slam the Master Chief gave her out of pure reflex. She had tried to sneak up on him and trip him over, which ended up with him turning around swiftly and tackling her. Still, she was the first one to laugh, Cortana following shortly, Johnson joining in after, and…to her surprise…Master Chief. She had never heard him give any sort of emotion, let alone happiness, but his laughs…were pleasant to her ears. She flipped through her memories like a book, remembering another time when she had managed to actually score a hit on one of the major areas on his body…a seriously major one.

'It was defensive, I swear!' she cried out loud in her mind, flushing a small bit as she remembered he had cornered her in the fighting ring. Angela had fallen down in the corner of it and he stood above her. Just as he was going down for 'the kill', she managed to use her last defense: ramming her leg up between his legs as he began to crouch down. He froze, showing no other sign that he had recognized the hit. Cortana's eyes were wide while Johnson was cringing. Sure, he had armor down there, but still…

'How embarrassing…' she thought, her face still flushed. Angela had retracted her leg from the spot, her shin actually throbbing because of the armor platting. Still, she knew she had unintentionally hit hard and Master Chief stood there, not moving an inch. He stood up, as if he had never been hit a moment later and held out his hand.

"_Well done_," Master Chief had told her, pulling her up, "_As long as you survive_." She was stunned, to say the least, especially after she had gone for his manhood in an effort not to lose. But he was right. In a life and death situation, you needed to utilize every advantage you had.

"Angela, we're here," Johnson told her, his grip on her shoulder squeezing her a little tighter, "For the last time, are you sure 'bout this, girl? This is officially the last time I can ask you this." She hadn't even noticed that they had come to the place, dwelling on her past week and a half. Her heart was pounding, the blood rushing to her ears so that she could barely hear anything.

"Yes…" she managed to reply, despite the huge lump in her throat. Master Chief, she saw, was in the room behind the one-way mirror. And in front of the one-way mirror was a completely white room with a huge tube, big enough for an abnormally sized human being. The tube had some ominous green liquid sloshing about on the floor of it, the minor tremors from the ship making it toss and flip. Sharp tools and machines were surrounding the tube, small holes and ports on the side of the tube to let in those wicked-looking things. Breathing in deeply as she stared at the nightmarish-augmentations machine, she nodded and stepped into the room. Johnson looked out at her from beyond the door that led to the white room.

"Please step into the tube," came a female scientist's voice, making Angela flinch. It didn't go unnoticed by anyone on the other side of the one-way mirror, in the safe room, the observation room. Angela nodded to show that she heard and she walked up to the tube. The door opened automatically, the clear oval swinging wide and causing Angela to back up a bit. It was at that moment that Angela fully felt the weight and the apprehension of going through with it. The gruesome details that had run through her mind before seemed even more gruesome with the added visions of those machines.

"Miss Sanderson?" came the woman's voice again, jolting her from her fearful contemplation, "Would you please step inside? The faster you do this…the faster it will be over…" Angela wanted to snap at the woman in fright and anger. For God's sake, at least the scientist could show a little more compassion! Angela was hesitating in front of the door, but eventually, she took another deep breath in and marched forward into the tube, turning around so that she was facing the one-way mirror.

"Now, don't be afraid," the woman said, "You will be able to breathe normally, so do not panic."

"What?" she squeaked, her muffled voice ignored as the tube began flooding with the same green liquid on the floor of the tube, "Oh my God!" She did begin to panic, but she soon remembered what the woman had said and she calmed down within moments. Her hair floated around her, creating a sort of black haze, her dark green eyes glowing leering out in contrast against the light, neon green liquid. Angela was wearing a spaghetti-strap white tee and white shorts, the lightest she had ever been wearing.

"Can you still hear me?" the voice asked, Angela nodding, "The augmentations will begin momentarily. The solution you are currently held in is something we had invented in the latter years of the augmentation process. Many Spartans had died because they bled out before the augmentations were done or didn't have medical fast enough after the process, but with that healing gel, deaths had decreased. So, do not worry about that detail if you were." Angela stirred at the one-way mirror in disbelief and horror, her mouth gaping wide open and a stream of bubbles came from her mouth as she said: "Are you kidding me?! Why the hell would you tell me that?!"

"Please hold on one moment, and…there, the process will begin shortly," the scientist told her. Straps flung out from the back of the tube and wrapped around her torso and legs, causing a moment of panic to run through her. Then, Angela saw a flicker of movement as twin machines on both of her sides move towards the openings in the tubes. Having multiple needles and tubes, they looked like glue guns that were jumbled into a pile. As soon as they moved into the slots and pressed against her arms, legs, shoulders, and spine, a sharp piercing from all of the needles made her cry out in pain. At first, it was like a regular shot, just in many places, then, she cried out again, screaming in fact as she felt something pumped into marrow. It felt as if someone was breaking glass in her bones, making her scream all the more.

"This is why I was nervous about this in the first place…" the scientist said, biting her lip, typing a few things into the computer, "She's practically an adult..."

"And that means…?" Johnson asked, confused and a bit scared as he saw her strain against her binds like a wild animal.

"It's basically changing her fully 100 percent," she managed to say after watching Angela actually break free for a moment and ram a knee into the tube wall, "While 14-year-olds were still adaptable, she's already set in her own body shape and size. We're technically literally altering her frame…" Angela began crying as she thrust her head upward, trying to break free of the pain and the bonds.

"The carbide's almost done…" the female scientist remarked, typing in certain codes into the machine. Suddenly, the ship rocked, causing everyone in the observation room to shift. The scientist fell down, Johnson kneeling, and Master Chief staying his ground, although he did brace himself.

"_Calling all military personnel, we are under attack, I repeat, we are under attack_," Cortana's voice sounded. Master Chief looked to Johnson and they nodded to each other, rushing out of the room. The scientist was about to flee as well, until Master Chief came back and stood in the door way, blocking her escape.

"What are you-" the scientist was cut off as Master Chief forcefully pointed to Angela, who had fainted after the carbide ceramic ossification was done, "I'm…I'm sorry, I forgot and…" Again, he pointed forcefully at her, his gun actually swinging down to her face as he let go of his gun with one hand. Nodding, she resumed her position, a bit more calm, but she typed at a frantic pace. The screaming once more resumed, causing Master Chief to halt suddenly as he turned around to exit. He looked once more at her, the ship making his head bounce a little as he continued to stare at her. Angela's eyes were open and she felt the pain more definitely, the rocking of the ship making the procedure even more painful. The light had been turned on and the one-way mirror effect was negated in the observation room.

"_Calling all military personnel, calling-_"

"_**John, get your titanium can down here!**_" Johnson interrupted Cortana on the P.A. system, "_**We got rogue Covenant!**_" Master Chief, despite having heard the announcement, held his position as he looked at Angela from his helmet. Angela, though, heard it as well, and she held up her hand, despite the pain and managed to silence herself for a minute.

"Go…" she whispered, Master Chief understanding, "Go, now…" He nodded and ran away to join the fighting. Angela fainted again, though she still felt the pain, subconscious screaming reemerging from her lips.

"There you are you old dog," Johnson said, "Looks like not all of the Brutes died in the war. Happened upon one of those stray planets and they got territorial." Johnson fired off another shot from his pistol, hitting on Brute in an unarmored part of its face, going down with a heavy thud.

"We have to keep them away from civilians and especially the research and development department. From what that scientist was going to do, Angela would've been a sitting duck!" Johnson gritted his teeth as he picked up an M90 tactical shotgun, pumping it and firing off a round at another Brute, "Let's go." Master Chief nodded as he picked up a Brute plasma rifle, taking it from the Brute he had killed by merely snapping its neck in cold calculation.

"I'm locking down all doors," Cortana told them, materializing by them as they began firing off rounds from their weapons, "_All civilians, all civilians, please retreat the nearest room. I will be sealing them off for your safety, and I will be reopening them when the coast is clear_." Cortana's hologram fizzled out when a Brute thought he was attacking a real woman, charging into the wall and knocking himself out. Cortana's hologram materialized smirking as she looked at the dumb Brute.

"Brutes…" Cortana said, suddenly fizzling out as another Brute tried to attack her, instead running into a shot gun and a very angry Johnson, Cortana rematerializing as it got blasted back, "Not the smartest aliens in the galaxy…"

"Cortana, did you lock everything up?" asked Johnson, firing off another round.

"Yes, I-" a huge explosion rocked the ship, sending human and Brute alike off their feet, "Johnson, a breach, at the back of the _Blazing_!"

"Seal it off!" Johnson ordered, running to push a Brute off of the catwalk railing, "Now!" The fighting began anew, the humans finally pushing back the Brutes as piles of them began gathering on the floor, dead.

"I managed to contain the breach but…" Cortana's eyes widened as her scans showed her something else, "Sir, a squad of Brute Bodyguards and one Brute Captain Major have infiltrated the ship at the breach…they're heading for the research and development department!"

"No! John, get your tin can ass over to Angela and-" Johnson turned to yell at Master Chief, who had started running as soon as Cortana had finished her discovery, "And God's speed…" Cortana followed Master Chief, unlocking every single door that was in his path to Angela. Meanwhile, the scientist, who's name was Anna, managed to finish all of the procedures that were necessary for a Spartan.

"Oh god, oh god, oh god, oh-" Anna, scared out of her mind, was literally cowering on the floor as she felt the huge tremor that came from the blast. She looked to the door which had sealed itself shut from before, wishing she had made her escape before. Standing up again to look at Angela, she shook her head. Anna had a duty, even if it was to some girl she didn't know. Anna checked Angela's vitals, still alive to her surprise and relief, and prepared Angela for immediate ejection.

"Miss Sanderson! Miss Sanderson!" Anna cursed herself. During the last augmentation, increasing her reflexes to a maximum of 300 percent, Anna had injected some sedation into the formula to make her stop screaming and to calm her down. It numbed Angela for the last of it and it seemed that it was still coursing through her system strongly.

"Miss Sanderson, you need to-" Anna gasped as she heard the huge pounding sound, scurrying away from the door as fast as possible. The door that led to the observation area from the hallway contained as many as 10 dents in it, an ugly Brute breathing on the window as it peered in. Its armor was a light blue, the scientist having studied Brute ranking order enough to know that it was a Brute Bodyguard, one of strongest. With one more pound, it had the door down, its curved frame skittering to a halt against the control panel with sparks.

"Oh my god…" she said again, squeezing herself under the desk and staring out at the Brutes who were filing in and inspecting. Most of them had light blue armor, but one had light yellow armor, and again, Anna prayed. This one was a Brute Captain Major, only three ranks down from the top. It looked down at her and gave her an ugly look.

"**Disgusting human…to think, these were the creatures that managed to win the war…**" Grathus said in his alien language, the yellow-armored Brute actually turning towards her. Terrified, Anna stayed there frozen, only so often twitching. Grathus reached down, a claw coming over and poking her in the forehead. If Anna wasn't so scared, she would've said 'what the hell?', but instead gave a frightened whimper. The Brutes laughed at this, none of them paying mind to the unconscious human floating in the green tube. Anna had shut off the lights in that room, though the neon green liquid glowed a bit.

"**What should we do with it, Captain Grathus?**" asked one bodyguard, eager to torture or maim the poor woman.

"**I say we kill her right now…one less human to deal with. Then we'll link up with the rest of the group,**" Grathus replied.

"**You****mean…there's more than just the diversionary squad and ours?**" asked the bodyguard.

"**Fool, the ship's scanner picks up only the first intruders when there's a breach,**" Grathus said, turning towards the bodyguard, "**It never pays attention to the seconds.**"

"**So…we were the other distraction?**" he asked, Grathus nodding.

"**It'll be a matter of time until this whole ship is ours**," Grathus said, "**And out of the hands of these filthy vermin.**" Grathus angrily wrapped a claw around Anna's brown hair, jerking out of her hiding spot and causing her to cry out. Using his other claw to wrap around his neck, he let go of her hair and slammed her into the window that looked into the augmentations room. Anna gave out the loudest and highest pitch scream she could, the Brute immediately drawing back a fist to shut her up.

"AAAAAAAUUUUUUUGGGGGGHHHHHH!!" was the first sound Angela heard through her newly heightened senses. The sedative finally wore off and she opened her eyes slowly. She remembered little, her green eyes glowing even more brightly as the last augmentation fully took effect. Hearing the scream again, except louder and more frantic, her eyes sprang wide open, but narrowed as she saw the scientist and the Brute.

"_Civilian under attack_," she mumbled in an almost electronic voice, "_Terminate threat_." The bindings that had kept her stationary wrapped around her like clothes (think Fifth Element…the white strips of clothes on that orange-haired girl…). The door wasn't open, but she placed her feet on the wall of the tube behind her and flew out, blasting through the glass of both the tube as she exited and the one-way mirror as she entered the observation room. She crashed into the Brute that was holding Anna, knocking Grathus into the next wall. Staying in her crouched position on Grathus, she turned to look at the bodyguards, growling while her green eyes glowed fiercely. They were a bit intimidated by this female compared to the other.

"_Threats found_," she said again in her strange voice, "_Must eliminate_." The Brutes finally figured out that she was hostile when she sprang towards one, reached under his helmet, grabbing at his chin, and flipping over him, taking his chin with her. Twisting around in mid-air, she landed on his back, and with animalistic strength, tore his bottom jaw off. Dropping it, she flipped back in front of him and shoved her hand way up, fast and strong, where his jaw was, causing the Brute Bodyguard to give several spasms before falling limp, held up by her strength alone. The rest of the Brutes, including Grathus who was on the floor, and Anna watched her in awe and silence. Putting her hand down, Angela's eerie glowing green eyes watched his head slip off her hand emotionlessly. As it dropped, they all saw a weird grey and sticky object in her hand. Angela held it up to her face, then threw it at the bodyguards' feet…it was the other bodyguard's brain.

"Oh my god…" Anna managed to mumble, Angela turning to look at her. With the light broken by her entry, Angela's eyes were almost the only light source in the darkened observation room. Grathus finally stood up and he grabbed Anna by the neck again, holding her out like a shield. Angela narrowed her eyes at him as she took a fighting stance, bolting forward as Grathus began squeezing Anna's neck. With inhuman speed, she ran towards him and leaped so that her knee quickly embedded itself in his helmet, crushing the armor inward so that he couldn't see. Angela then twisted around after her knee implant, kicking his hand backwards into the control panel. Sparks of electricity came in contact with his armor, electrocuting him for a small bit. Roaring in pain, he let go of Anna, who fell into Angela's waiting hands. Angela jumped again, easily carrying Anna as Angela quickly kicked one in the chest and ran away into the hallway. The brutes, who weren't exactly eager to chase down the girl who single-handedly pulled the brain out of a Bodyguard Brute, stood there in shock.

"**GET HER!!**" Grathus bellowed at his bodyguards, the Brutes snapping back to reality and running after her. Pulling off his officially screwed helmet, Grathus growled and then ran after his bodyguards. A few minutes later, Master Chief finally managed to reach the room Angela had been in. Breathing hard, Master Chief stared at the grey squishy thing on the floor, then the jaw, then the dead Brute. Cortana materialized next to him, staring at the scene.

"_Where is she?_" was all Master Chief asked, calmly and in a cool tone. Underlying that, though, he truly feared for her. Suddenly, he was answered by several shots as he saw Angela charging away from those shots, turning the corner and practically running on the wall to avoid collision. Upon seeing Master Chief, she immediately thrust Anna in his hands, jumping over his form, pushing him back into the room with a good amount of force. Understanding that she wanted him to hide, he hid himself with Anna in the observation room. Cortana also zipped out, just in time as the rest of the Brutes chased Angela.

"Well…" Cortana remarked, dumbfounded, "I know where she is…"

"Oh god…that girl," Anna spoke up, "She…the Brute…I…I created a monster…" Master Chief set the horrified scientist on the floor and ran after Angela. Cortana ran with him, hoping the scientist had enough sense to realize that she should hide.

"John, we have to find her," Cortana said, Master Chief nodding in agreement. Meanwhile, the main control room where the captain piloted the ship was finally rid of Brutes, Johnson kicking one over the side of the catwalk.

"_Johnson, watch out for Angela,_" came Cortana's voice on the P.A., "_She's up and about…and already in trouble_."

"Copy that," he replied, and nodded to the other men who survived to go to their posts and watch for the girl. Cortana sighed as she glided quickly next to Master Chief.

"They're watching for her now," Cortana told him, Master Chief staying silent, "John?" He didn't answer, but kept running, searching every hallway and room for her.

"John, please, you need to slow down…" Cortana advised, seeing as how the temperature in his body was beginning to look high, "You're overheating." Master Chief slowed and stopped, looking at Cortana as he began panting slightly, although it looked like he was just standing and breathing normally on the outside.

"I know you want to find Angela, but, please, slow down," Cortana advised him, "If she could rip out the brain of that Brute, she can handle whatever comes her way." Suddenly, they heard more plasma shots and saw Angela running towards them. Both of them hadn't seen what she really looked like before, but they got a good look at her now. She was wearing only neon green bandages, showing off the well-toned body and the shifting of her muscles easily. Her eyes gave an eerie glow, her hair was somewhat wet still, but the green streak in her hair seemed to have grown lighter, akin to the neon like her eyes. She had grown a bit taller, her moves carrying a certain grace in contrast to her clumsiness in her training. Angela noticed the two and turned a corner in an attempt to lead the Brutes astray, but they also noticed Master Chief and Cortana, eager to pursue easier prey. The Bodyguard Brutes moved towards the two, Angela digging her heels in as she found that they weren't chasing her.

"_Civilians in danger_," she mumbled, her eyes glowing brighter for a second as she turned around and ran back the way she came. Master Chief began shooting at one of the Bodyguard Brutes, Cortana just watching the fight as she could virtually do nothing to help. Angela leapt onto the back of one of the Bodyguard Brutes, wrapping her long legs around his neck and then grabbing his head, pulling upward severely then jerking it hard to the right. After hearing a satisfying cracking sound, she took the Brute plasma rifle off of him and began firing a few rounds off herself. Jumping up, she managed to plant her foot on one of the Brutes' faces, knocking him back. Angela distracted them by practically dancing on their heads, Master Chief firing off round after round into them.

"_Civilians in danger_," she repeated, launching herself forward and smashing into the chest of Grathus, though he caught her with a Brute smirk. Squeezing her against him, he kept her pinned against him with one arm while the other Brutes kept Master Chief off his back. Angela dropped the weapon in surprise, but just glared at him with a death threat in her eyes. Grathus had to admit, she was a fine fighter, and her moves were…enticing to say the least. Assessing her, Grathus touched a finger to her jaw and moved her head up to the right, staring at her neck, his gaze strolling down the contours of her body. Most Brute females were larger and unruly, mating usually rare and involving one female having many male mates. Grathus himself was tied to one female, but he only mated once with her in his lifetime. Grathus rather liked the slimmer woman, her looks appealing and extremely soft on the eyes.

"Let go of her!" Cortana yelled at Grathus, her hologram popping up next to him. Though Master Chief couldn't get past the wall of Bodyguard Brutes, Cortana could and as she saw the Captain Brute holding her so, she couldn't stand it. Startled at first, Grathus waved a hand absentmindedly and her hologram form wavered.

"**Leave me be, wretched blue human,**" he said, Cortana giving a noise of indignation,"**This female pleases me**." Angela struggled, punching several times, although it didn't have any effect being that close and her arms pinned. He had raised her off the ground so that her legs were effectively wrapped around one of his own legs.

"John!" Cortana called out. Master Chief managed to look up and saw between the bodies of the Brutes the form of Angela pressed up against Grathus. Master Chief saw a hallway to his left, immediately running into it. Hearing the Brutes run after him, he could only shake his head on how stupid they were. Master Chief rounded the corner, getting a clear shot to Grathus, his Bodyguard Brutes all following Master Chief. All the Brutes had to do was stay near Grathus and they would have cornered Master Chief, but…

"**No, you idiots!**" Grathus understood their mistake as his head was shot off by Master Chief's plasma rifle. Angela shoved his body away, Grathus' hand still wrapped around her waist, making her have to pry his dead fingers off her hip.

"…_Angela…_" Master Chief said, staring at her as she turned to look at him, her eyes still glowing and deadly. His military instincts were forgotten as he took in the sight of the Angela before him, not like the girl he had first met and gotten to know. All of the sweet innocence that surrounded her in an aura was gone, only cold calculating and military intellect was left. She swiftly darted by him, slamming her feet into one Bodyguard Brute's chest, doing a back flip and going into a fighting stance. Master Chief turned around and took the same stance, finding both his guns' without ammo.

"John, I sense another group of Brutes…they're going for the civilian quarters!" Cortana exclaimed, Angela's eyes glowing brighter for a second. Master Chief took notice and nodded to Cortana in recognition.

"_Calling all military personnel,_" Cortana announced, "_Civilian quarters have been breached, we need help now!_"

"_Civilians in trouble_," Angela whispered, her eyes narrowing again, "_Eliminate threats, priority one!_" Angela and Master Chief both attacked at the same time, her past experience in working with him in the arenas flooding through her mind. They worked synchronized, covering for each other as they battled the Brutes. Angela delivered quick blows to the last Brute, stunning it before Master Chief jumped and slammed his armored fist into its head, smashing it between his fist and the wall. Angela ran away quickly, her whole body covered in the Brutes' dark blue blood, staining her bandages. The odd combination of dark blue and neon green made her certainly look exceedingly dangerous, though she also seemed even more beautiful by the added colors of her kills.

"John, the civilians," Cortana reminded him, Master Chief running after Angela and grabbing her forearm. This caused her to give him a cold glare, but he pointed towards the civilians' quarters, indicating that she was going the wrong way. He began running in the direction he pointed to, Angela following him as he led her to the real problems. Several men had pistols and were trying to fend off the Brutes as best as they could, the women and children behind them cowering in fear.

"_Threats found,_" Angela said, running past Master Chief. She jumped up and landed on one of the Brutes' back, grabbing his helmeted head and giving it a hard twist, effectively breaking the surprised Brute's neck. She jumped off, landing on one of the Brutes in front and distracting it. The men stopped firing at once as they saw the young woman. Master Chief had picked up the dead Brute's weapon and automatically began shooting them down at close range. The Brutes roared, their attention divided between the hand-to-hand combat killing machine, the Spartan with the deadly accuracy, and the many gun shots from the civilians with the pistols. They were pissed at having to deal with so much crap, basically going on a rampage and attacking whatever enemy was closest. Angela jumped down and jammed a plasma rifle she had taken from Grathus between the Brute's helmet and his chest armor, nestled in its neck. It froze as the Brute felt it there, but it was also amazed at the closeness of her body to his. She had wrapped her long legs around his broad frame, so that her hips sat directly on his. Her hand gripped the back of his helmet so that she could put the gun there. It was the last feeling he would ever know, of the closeness of the human female and her gun as she pulled the trigger, sending a plasma shot through his neck, decapitating him.

"_Citizens, move away_," she advised, "_Hide_." She fell with the body, crouching on his body as if claiming it as her kill. Her green eyes flashed with a deadly intent, baring her teeth in an animalistic fashion. The men behind her were astounded, a young teen, perhaps 16 or 17, stared at the dangerous and beautiful woman, only wrapped in bandages. He actually blushed as she looked back at them.

"_GO!!_" she ordered, the men instantly gathering up their wives and children and everyone else, moving them away from the fighting. Angela looked back to the Brutes, only getting a giant fist in the face in return. She flew back, knowing that this was because she got distracted by the civilians. Yet, when she saw their backs upside down, she felt just a little bit better. Landing on her back roughly, she got back to her feet, clutching her face in a bit of pain. Master Chief was finally joined by Johnson and the remaining soldiers, the Brutes finally beginning to thin. When there were only perhaps 7 or so Brutes remaining and standing between Master Chief's group and Angela, Master Chief resorted to hand-to-hand combat. Johnson and the other men offered a few shots, but it was limited due to the risk of hitting Master Chief. They were awed as they saw between the bodies Angela, using her acrobatic skills and newly found hand-to-hand combat skills to fight off the aliens. Finally, they reached other, Master Chief and Angela were surrounded by the last Brutes, all of them high-ranked and armed with deadly weapons. Angela and Master Chief backed up into each other, Angela turning her head swiftly and was about to strike, Master Chief doing the same. As soon as they saw that they weren't Brutes, though, they gave a nod and they worked together to fight them off, like before. The Brutes were made of quick work with the two Spartans working together, the last Brute cornered as he glanced between the two human warriors.

"_Last threat, elimination inevitable_," Angela told the Brute. The Brute tried his plasma rifle, but it was out of ammo, as were his other weapons. He held up his hands in surrender, but Angela only glared at him.

"_Surrender: not an option_," she replied, "_Termination inevitable_." She walked right in front of him, her green eyes holding his gaze captive as she stuck the weapon into his gut. With only a narrowing of her eyes, Angela pulled the trigger, rapidly firing into him, the Brute roaring in pain as it shredded his armor and eventually disemboweled him. Letting the alien slide down, leaving a dark blue trail on the wall as he slumped, Angela stepped back as if to look at her work. Then, the neon glow in her eyes left and she blinked, giving a surprised expression.

"…What…what…" she looked down at herself, covered in alien blood, "What have I done?" Angela remembered every single kill she made and she sank to her knees, staring at her hands. Cortana and the rest of the soldiers came over to her.

"You did nothing wrong," Cortana told her, crouching near her. Though she couldn't really touch her, Cortana ran a holographic hand down Angela's back in a comforting gesture.

"Oh my god…what have I done?" Angela's voice cracked and tears began running down her face, "I killed sentient beings…I never wanted to kill anything!" Johnson and his men were at a lost as they saw the girl crying, not sure how to comfort her, especially since she just took out an entire squadron of Brutes.

"Girl…you saved this ship and its people," Johnson told her, after swallowing the dry lump in his throat, "That's _nothing_ to be ashamed of. So…so don't cry, okay?"

"_Angela…_" Master Chief said, Angela looking up at the men. Johnson squatted and gave her a smile, ruffling her hair.

"You did good, kid, you did real good," he encouraged her. She gave a small smile, but she was still horrified at her actions.

"_Well done_," Master Chief said, squatting down like Johnson, "_Well done_." He took her chin and lifted it so that she stopped staring at her hands. Angela saw how blood-stained Master Chief was, just as blood-stained as her and she gave a bit of a smile. All of the men then began trying their own way to comfort her.

"Thanks," Angela said, wiping her tears away with the back of her hand, "Really…thanks." The men stood up, offering to help her up, but she waved their hands away. Shakily, Angela stood up, determined not to show weakness, but she collapsed against someone. She looked up to apologize, but froze as she saw that she was leaning on Master Chief himself…only wrapped in bandages. Blushing, she tried to push herself off, but he instead wrapped an arm around her, supporting her. Angela looked back at him in surprise, giving a small squeak as he suddenly swept his other arm under her knees, carrying her bridal style.

"Master Chief? What are you…?" Angela was blushing as he carried her away, Johnson, Cortana, and the other boys following them. Johnson and Cortana had secret smiles on their faces as they watched the two Spartans, Angela protesting with the evident blush on her face and Master Chief stoically carrying her.

"Those two are gonna be a hell of team, wouldn't you say?" Johnson guessed, chuckling as Master Chief adjusted his hold on Angela and she squeaked again as she bounced in his grip.

"Yes, I would," Cortana giggled, Angela going quiet after Master Chief turned to look at her, "And I think I sense that they may become more of a team."

"Oh, you don't say?" Johnson sarcastically asked in good humor, raising an eyebrow as Angela turned her head away from Master Chief's gaze, blushing even more.

"I'm really glad that she didn't lose herself, though," Cortana mentioned, seeing Angela smile at Master Chief and laughing as he himself turned his own head away from her gaze, "Honest to God, I love that girl…"

"Don't think you're the only one," Johnson laughed, Master Chief not watching where he was going and bonked his helmet on the low doorway, Angela gasping and asking him if he was all right, "Ah, I love that girl, too. Maybe she'll give ole John there a run for his money, who knows." With that, Master Chief headed into the infirmary, disappearing from everyone's view along with Angela, though they could definitely hear the concerned Angela scolding him on looking where he was going and if he was all right. It was the funniest and dangerous day the whole military personnel of the _Blazing of Spring_ ever had.

* * *

chiv-id: I have to pat myself on the back for this one. I like this chapter.

Angela: Are you sure you didn't hurt yourself?

Master Chief: (sigh) _Yes..._

Angela: Well, that's good. I still don't see why you had to carry me though...I was fine...just needed to get used to it again.

chiv-id: Really, it's so obvious! It's because he- (Master Chief slaps hand over chiv-id's mouth, pulls off his hand) Okay, okay! Yeesh, I won't tell!

Angela: Tell me what?

chiv-id: Er...that we can see your ) through your bandages?

Angela: (blushing heavily-squeaks) What?

Master Chief: (slaps hand on helmet and shakes head)

chiv-id: Well, that's all the time we have folks so...g-g-g-good-bye y'all! REVIEWS!!


	6. Armor

chiv-id: OMG, what is up, you guys? How freaking long have I _not_ continued this story?

Angela: Quite a long time.

MC: _Agreed. Had she not locked us in a room with energy shields, I would have gotten her and made her continue the story at gunpoint._

chiv-id: (sweatdrops) He's not kidding. Sorry I locked you guys up, but I knew that you wouldn't like the really long break I decided to take from this story. By the way, what did you guys do while you were in that room?

Angela: (blushes)

MC: ...

chiv-id: (grins) Ooh, we gon' find out what you guys did, but first, disclaimer!

Disclaimer: chiv-id does not own Halo, Bungie does. If chiv-id did own Halo, she'd be rich and wouldn't have to waste time going to school.

chiv-id: And now, for the long-awaited...like super-long-awaited...Chapter 5 of "Give Me Direction, Give Me Life", _Armor_!

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Chapter 5: Armor

_"It's really pretty tonight, huh?" a younger version of Angela, around the age of 10, looked up at the stars from her position from the ground. She was laying in the backyard of the orphanage, all the lights having gone out and indicating that no one would miss her presence. It also meant that the stars were even more brightly lit. Sneaking out was the one rebellious thing she had done in her life and it thrilled her at that age._

"_Yeah, it is…" she looked over to the man who was laying with her. More specifically, he was a boy, but he sure looked like a man. His name seemed to escape her, but she knew he was a friend. This man had been with the strange men that visited the orphanage again and this time, they had taken a good look at one of the more aggressive and problematic children, Damon. He had a bad attitude and liked picking fights with the other boys of the class, even sometimes bullying the girls. However, he wasn't dumb and was actually relatively smart despite his brute-like quality. For some reason, when they came that day, he had grabbed her arm roughly when she was performing her tricks and threw her inside a broom closet, telling her to stay put._

"_You can't come out, you here? They'll do bad things to you if they find you!" he had told her. She was rather scared, but didn't say a word. When they were about to leave, she emerged and the one man that had stayed behind spotted her, walking over to her. Frozen to the spot, Angie let herself be discovered, but found that the man wasn't all that unpleasant to talk to. In fact, she liked him. He had decided to stay with her long after the other strange men in suits were gone. Even when she asked if the other men were going to wonder where he was, he replied that he'd 'check in with them later'. The man had even asked if she ever just gazed up at the stars at night, to which she replied that she'd never done so, seeing as how curfew was before dark. He suggested sneaking out to see it, he once did it with his friend back home, and wanted to watch it with her._

"_Angie?" the young man looked to Angela and smiled softly, showing a small gap between his teeth that was almost erased. His head looked as though it had been shaved recently, yet brown hair began to sprout from his scalp, forming a sort of light afro. His eyes seemed to have a dimmed joylessness to them, but they still had a hazel shine that drew her towards him. He had told her that he wasn't a man. He had said that the men he was with made him grow up. He said he was 16, not 25, but she was sure he was lying. He looked exactly as old as Mr. Buntz, who told her he was 25. Still, it was interesting and exciting that she was friends with a grown-up other than Mr. Buntz, her long-time crush._

_ "Yeah?" she turned to him and smiled back, brightly. The boy noticed the glimmer in her eyes and smiled just a bit wider._

_ "Don't change, OK?" he asked her, and she heard a rustle as the man's pinky touched hers, making her suck in her breath in surprise. She looked at his pinky, then at him, then grasped his pinky more firmly in hers._

_ "Pinky promise!" she understood the gesture, although she didn't quite understand what the change part meant. The man smiled at her and sat up, pointing at a certain glowing star._

_ "See that star?" he asked her, and she nodded, "That's where I'll be tomorrow. In the _Eridanus System_. I'll be going back home." She frowned and sat up as well, looking at him._

_ "You're leaving already?" she asked, pouting, "I thought we were friends." He chuckled and rubbed a hand on her head, messing up her short black hair. Frowning, she grabbed his hand._

_ "If I grow up, can I come with you, too?" she asked, and he stopped chuckling. He looked away from her, not letting her see the dark expression clouding his face._

_ "I thought we pinky-promised on you _never_ changing," he reminded her before turning to her, some of the darkness ebbing away when she began hiccupping with tears._

_ "But we just started being friends!" she protested, blubbering, and he used a hand to wipe her tears away, "And you haven't even met the others yet!"_

_ "I know, but maybe we'll see each other again," he looked to the house, "I met Damon. He might be coming with us."_

_ "Why does Damon get to come, but I can't?" she whined, her eyes still red with tears._

_ "Because it's dangerous and you could get hurt," he admitted, and she became tight-lipped._

_ "Then don't go!" she yelled at him, standing up. Even with him sitting and her standing, they were only just eye-to-eye. Her eyebrows were in an angry V-shape._

_ "If it's dangerous, don't go!" she cried at him, "Don't get hurt! Stay here!" He stared at her for a few seconds before using a hand to cover up the smirk and chuckling. She gave a small sound of indignation at his laughing. When he finally recovered, he got to his feet and squatted down, hugging her._

_ "Sometimes, we have to get hurt to protect the things we love," he pulled away and petted her head gently before looking down darkly, "Even hurt others to do it." Her eyes widened, but before he or she could say anything else, the sound of a car pulling up cut their thoughts. At the same time, the lights in the orphanage turned on and Angela heard her name being called._

_ "Good-bye Angie, we'll meet again someday, I pinky-promise," he held her pinky in his, Angela staring at her pinky before looking back at him, "And I _always_ keep my promises." He let go of her pinky and left, Angela's eyes starting to fill with tears again._

_ "No, don't go! I don't wanna see you get hurt! Mommy and Daddy got hurt and they never came back!" she yelled at him, running after him. However, Damon, a few other kids, and some caretakers had rushed out of the house at the noise and her screaming. Damon noticed her first and ran over, grabbing her and turning her towards him._

_ "What did they do to you? Did they ask you anything?" he questioned her before shaking her severely, "Did they?"_

_ "No…" she sobbed, becoming more scared, "They didn't…" He let her go in relief and she fell to the grassy floor. Angela turned to the car, the man's back to her._

_ "No! Don't go!" she scrambled after him, and he seemed to notice her. However, he turned his back on her and just entered the car before it drove off. Damon had grabbed her shoulders and began shaking her, yelling her name at her to stop her from chasing after him…

* * *

_

"No…no…don't go," she whimpered feverishly before her back hit cold, hard metal. She looked at herself and found that she'd fallen from her bed. Her eyes were wide open, and she felt sweat trickle from her neck down her cheek and into her scalp, the upper half of her body strewn on the floor while her lower half was enjoying the bed. She struggled to pick herself up, but was surprised when large hands went under her shoulders and lifted her back to the bed.

"_I'm not going anywhere_," a familiar voice replied to her with a bit of humor. She blushed heavily and dove back into the covers once she was completely in bed, covering her face. Master Chief was sitting in a chair next to her, prior to helping her back up. Now, he had sat down on the bed, Angela's blush spreading further across her face when she heard and felt the coils of the bed creak. He put a hand on her head and rubbed it, her eyes going wide at the gesture. Master Chief then sat back down on his chair and seemed to go back to sleep. Absently, her hand traveled to her head and she blushed again.

'He's actually not that bad…,' she thought to herself and shook her head, burying it further into her pillow. Angela began to replay the strange dream she had, remembering its details clearly, before realizing that it was a memory, not a dream. She may have had forgotten it, but it was still there. Why was she remembering this now? She wondered and gave up, decidedly closing her eyes and trying to go back to sleep. However, not half an hour later, Cortana came to wake her and Master Chief both.

"Well, if it isn't the noble protector and his lady," she gestured to the both of them, amused. Angela woke up with a groan and rubbed at her eyes, Master Chief standing up rather haltingly. It seemed that sleeping in a chair did take a toll. Cortana eventually dropped the niceties and went straight to the point, becoming serious.

"Intelligence has gathered some data on our current situation. We're hovering over the planet Ga-Mek, one of the smaller bodies in the Orpheus System," she reported as they slowly awakened, "It seems like the Jiralhanae, or Brutes, that have been attacking us earlier are apart of a small resistance colony that has hidden itself and sustained itself for some time by eliminating approaching ships and stealing their cargo. It is assumed that this is the first time they have ever encountered a military vessel and seem to be mustering another force to attack."

"What?" Angela looked up with wide eyes.

"_This ship can't take another attack_," Master Chief cracked his neck side to side, "_The shields are down and the civilians we're transporting could sustain injuries in the next assault. Cortana, what's our options?_"

"Recommendations are to make a tactical retreat and return to the Nebulous Galaxy, to the planet Vastonis where we have a military outpost strong enough to protect the civilians from any further harm," Cortana nodded to Master Chief, "After which, we can safely pass the planet without fear of civilian casualties." Angela lips pressed together into a thin line. She had heard of these Brutes before, and after fighting them up close, she wasn't exactly any more enthused about fighting them now as back then. She contemplated her previous experience with the aliens before walking over to Cortana.

"Why are the Brutes here on Ga-Mek? I thought that the Elites were able to keep them restrained to their home world, in Doisac," she spoke up, Master Chief turning to her along with Cortana.

"Brutes, although self-destructive to their own species, were able to continue using space travel after the Covenant was divided," Cortana motioned to a set of pictures she was able to stream into the room, "Due to their interference, the Covenant enabled the Brutes to explore new areas to conquer and furthered their expansion. Although the Sangheili, or Elites, have eliminated the most threatening of their bases, there are still groups of colonies that are found scattered through out the universe."

"I see…" Angela worriedly bit down on her lip, "This route…is it a common one for ships?"

"Fortunately, no," Cortana replied, pulling a log up, "But unfortunately, because it is not a popular circuit, cargo vessels that used it were not missed and anyone bothering to look for them must have encountered a similar fate." Angela closed her eyes and took a deep breath, letting it out in a sad exhale.

"We have to stop this," she caught Cortana and Master Chief's attention, "I know we have a mission to do…but isn't it dangerous to leave a colony of them so near?"

"We don't have time to corral them ourselves, I'm afraid," Cortana ran a holographic hand on Angela's head, "The best we can do is alert the authorities at Vastonis to deal with the problem."

"How long would the people we're carrying have to wait for Vastonis to 'deal with the problem'?" Angela asked, a flash of neon green striking her eyes. Cortana looked at Master Chief who seemed to be thinking.

"_I get the point,_" he looked to Cortana, "_Besides, after they made a mess of your ship, I'm thinking you're up for a little payback. So, the other option…?_" Cortana smirked and put up another display of images.

"Scanners indicate that while the colony in of itself is small, it is a military installation and, so the enemies will be difficult to handle," she pulled a particular image up, Angela and Master Chief coming over to inspect it, "However, I was able to discover that there are currently only two transport ships that are operational and seem to be their only mode of space travel. If we send a small stealth group to infiltrate the compound and sabotage their transports before they're able to get off the ground, it will eliminate the threat of piracy and allow the civilians to reach their appointed destination, as well as give the Vastonian soldiers time to muster a large enough force to deal with them."

"So, who's the stealth group?" Angela asked, and Master Chief looked pointedly at her along with Cortana, "Wait…me?"

"And him," Cortana placed a holographic hand on Master Chief's shoulder, "The both of you will sneak into the hangar and place timed charges on their engines. Once you're both clear, I can detonate the charges from here." Angela looked rather uneasy, but Cortana smiled.

"Don't worry, I can see everything from the scanners here, if you're too close, I won't detonate the charges," Cortana then directed her attention to the door way, "Sergeant Johnson, I assume you've heard our plan." Johnson appeared and had a scowl on his face.

"Now, I know that Angela got all powered-up an' all, but you can't just send her into the field with no military training! Besides fighting techniques, she's practically a greenhorn!" Johnson turned to Angela, "No offense, sweetheart, but…" Angela looked over to Master Chief and Cortana, neither of them saying anything.

"As long as Master Chief is with me," she told him when she looked back to Johnson, "I'm sure I can do just about anything." Angela turned to Master Chief who showed no outward emotion.

"At your service, Master Chief," she saluted and he shook his head. Johnson decided to speak for him and put a hand on her shoulder.

"As admirable as that is, darling, Master Chief can't be babysitting you on the battlefield," Angela turned back to him, "If you're gonna do this, you have to be acting of your own judgment. And let's face it…you ain't got the tactical know-how to do this. Just leave it to the professionals." Johnson left the room with that, Angela's face blank and solemn for once. Master Chief approached her and gently put a hand on her shoulder.

"_Don't worry, I got your back_," he whispered to her and she brightened immediately. He walked out of the room with a sly Cortana smiling wryly at her.

"You're enjoying the special treatment, I see," Angela snapping out of it as soon as Cortana floated in front of her vision, "You're the first I've seen he's interacted with so friendly." Angela blushed and walked through her hologram, Cortana continuing to smile all the while. The AI followed her out of the infirmary and to her quarters, where she incessantly teased her until she talked.

"FINE…" Angela was sitting on her bed, putting on her military clothes and taking off the ridiculous bandage wear and the flimsy hospital gown, "It's…nice…" If there was one thing that Angela didn't like, it was the feeling of embarrassment or being poked at because of her feelings.

"There! Was that so hard to admit?" Cortana sat down with her on the bed, although it didn't give because of her non-existent state, "John has been through so much that trust has left him wary. And not many show approval to the Spartans, or if they do, their loyalty and admiration is fleeting. After all, Spartans were a product of the Human-Covenant War. Without conflict, they serve no purpose other than to haunt people's memories and cause insecurities, most of this being unintentional." Cortana's holographic eyes went stormy.

"Some people, such as Johnson, do care for him, as does the Elites' Arbiter, Thel 'Vadam," Cortana turned to her, "I suppose the purpose of telling you this is to express my…_our_ appreciation of your concern and admiration for him. He may not be able to tell you this now, but perhaps in the future, he will be able to truly articulate his thanks." Angela cocked her head, her eyebrows scrunching while Cortana's serious mouth turned devious once more. Soon, however, Cortana phased out after issuing a farewell, having to plan a few things in preparation for the stealth attack. Angela laid on her bed, a rubber band on her wrist snapping every time she pulled it in contemplation. Although the way Cortana was acting did confuse her, the more pressing issue in her mind was the dream or memory she had just a few minutes ago. She wondered who the man was and why he came to her now, when she was nearly 22, twelve years since that event. Closing her eyes, Angela discovered that the dream had given her clarity on his appearance, that military-shaved haircut, those fiery, yet somewhat hard eyes, and that small gap that was on the verge of nonexistence. If she had met him then at her current age, she would've thought he was rather…cute. Angela shook her head, trying to focus on the real question: why had she dreamt of that man?

"_Calling Angela Sanderson to the Armory,_" a voice on the intercom, Cortana's, ringing out above her, "_Angela Sanderson, to the Armory_." She got up and just as she reached the door, she panicked for a second.

'Wait, where's the armory?' she thought and her hand hesitated to open the door, but Cortana appeared in person to open it for her, so to speak. Angela squeaked and retracted her hand as if she was burned.

"I had realized your dilemma and resigned my duties to the other technicians on the bridge," she smiled again when Angela put a hand over her heart and sighed, "You're rather timid, aren't you?"

"Yeah…I've been called that before," Angela straightened and gave a shaky smile, "I just get startled often. Anyway, the Armory?" Cortana nodded and lead her to the Armory, where many weapons such as guns and grenades were located, even some stranger, alien-looking ones.

"So, why am I here Cortana?" she asked, not touching a single weapon in the room and gingerly sitting down on a bench.

"Since the end of the Human-Covenant War, public information on all Covenant forces has been reduced to nearly nothing, so I assume you do not have knowledge on Brute customs. To start off, Brutes are not known for keeping prisoners of war," Angela's eyes widened a bit at this, "They do not value information so much as kills and food, so if captured, the worry that takes precedence would be getting eaten or slaughtered. I know this is not pleasant to hear, but you must hear this for your own benefits and safety. Are you alright?" Angela looked a little green and leaned against a locker for support.

"Yes…" she swallowed the dry lump in her throat, "Continue…" She wasn't the kind to hide her emotions or gloss it over with a false one, but she was trying her hardest not to imagine what Cortana was saying. Had Angela really fought against these things?

"Brutes are also not very merciful creatures and even fight amongst their own kind. They also favor melee weapons as opposed to ranged ones, enjoying tearing their victims apart," Cortana looked to Angela, "So, as you can imagine, it might be helpful to have some armor to protect yourself when facing them. We do have some armor prepared for you, as well as some weapons in case you run into any trouble down there." A locker near her opened, cloudy mist and cool air meeting her face when she turned to it. When the fog finally cleared, she had been standing up and approaching whatever had come out of it.

"Spartan-II class MJOLNIR Power Assault Armor/Mark VI," Cortana explained, and Angela stared at it in fascination, "Standard issue. No Spartan is complete without one. It was made to your specifications." The armor was strung up in a human shape against the wall that had come out of the locker.

"Specifications?" she asked, staring at it. It looked just like Master Chief's armor, the exact same color, but a little more feminine. Its waist was tied in a little and its limbs were thinner, though the bust and hips looked emphasized due to this. Despite the femininity of it, it looked sturdy, strong, and most of all, Spartan.

"Your measurements," Cortana replied, and Angela looked to Cortana, "Well? Go on, try it. Although, I should warn you of its weight and complexity perhaps…" However, as soon as Cortana had given her the green light, Angela approached it and took the helmet first, looking into its yellow-orange tint and breathing in before putting it on. As soon as it was on her head, she felt a click near the back of her skull and suddenly, her vision swarmed with information and displays. She also felt a small painful spark where she had felt the click and was about to tear off the helmet in panic when Cortana swept into view.

"Don't. It is connecting to your neural implants and removing it during the initial link up may prove fatal," she warned and Angela's hands shakily left it alone, "After this, you can safely remove it as easily as taking off a hat. Is the Heads-Up Display functioning properly?" Angela breathed calmly and found that it was comfortable inside the helmet, cool air flowing around her face and the blinking blue lights and readings now less chaotic.

"Um…yes?" Cortana flashed out of existence and suddenly, her voice echoed in her head.

"_Yes, it seems to functioning well_," Angela closed her eyes and clasped her head, Cortana's voice overwhelming her thoughts and seemingly blocking out the noise.

"Cortana, your voice…why…?" Angela suddenly heard an electronic shriek, grunting in pain.

"I'm sorry, I was merely trying to check on your condition," Angela opened her eyes and Cortana had reappeared, "I had a replica of my AI-chip installed in your helmet so I could transition between your helmet as well as John's. Do not worry, this will only be temporary as you shall have your own AI someday." She cocked her head after getting over the initial shock of having Cortana in her head.

"My own…AI?" she queried and Cortana gave an exasperated chuckle, "Sorry, I'm asking a lot of questions, aren't I?"

"Yes, you are, but it's all right. All Spartans are outfitted with their own AI. Sometimes they are Smart AIs, such as myself, in which our function is not specified but we learn and relay information much like a human, and we are also exceptionally smart," Cortana couldn't help but puff out her chest a little when she was talking, Angela giggling at the action, "Then there are Dumb AIs, in which they have a specific purpose and are well-versed in their purpose, but they do not learn and are rather settled in their role. For instance, if a Spartan was to be deployed for recon, then an AI with the function to survey the surrounding area and give feedback on their current position as well as foreign bodies may be the best AI for that Spartan. For you, your current purpose is to recover sleeping Spartans, and for that, perhaps you should have a similar-functioning AI. However, you are at an early stage of Spartan training and thus, I will be your AI for the initial period of your assignments."

"Okay…so…that was a lot of information," Angela scratched the back of her helmet in embarrassment, "An AI will be assigned to me when I get more used to this armor?" Cortana nodded and Angela smiled, although it didn't show outwardly. Angela glanced back at the armor and touched the chest plate. She stopped smiling and instead looked at it pensively. This marked the end of her time as a civilian and the beginning of her life as a Spartan. She would be hated, looked down upon, and most of all, feared. Her friends might not recognize her, and if they did, they might not want anything to do with her. And who knows what else this armor might hold for her in the future. Certainly a large amount of death, but who's, she was unsure of, perhaps her own. She thought of Master Chief and his comrades who were either missing or dead and of the obstacles he had to overcome to survive to this day.

"There's no going back after this, is there…?" she asked in a serious and quiet tone. Cortana was not surprised by this question, knowing that sooner or later, Angela would think about her decisions carefully and wonder if this was the life for her. However, Cortana could not answer her and did not respond. Angela closed her eyes. When she opened them, she began to assemble the suit of armor upon herself with Cortana's instructions. It was the end of her peaceful days…and the start of a life of struggle and turmoil that would yield one of the greatest Spartans in humanity during the post-war times.

* * *

chiv-id: Well, it was a pretty short chapter, but at least I got the ball rolling again on this story!

MC: _So...who's this guy you were dreaming about?_

Angela: I...I honestly don't know...(blushes)

MC: _...Tell me his address and I'll send him a bomb for Christmas._

chiv-id: No can do MC. (whispers to MC) I'll tell you who he is in the next chapter, so keep your armor pants on.

MC: _Fine. But if you don't hold your promise..._(pumps shotgun)

chiv-id: (sweatdrops) I get the point. Oh, and for readers, I read your reviews and just to clarify on a few things:

**1) I understand that Brute blood is red now, not blue. Sorry if I confused you. They're not special Brutes or anything, I just fucked up their blood color in the last chapter.**

** 2) Apparently, I also fucked up John's description, but I also read that Augmentations make Spartans' hair and eye color change, so I'm deciding whether to keep his current appearance in this story or to make him go back to his actual appearance as told by the game and comics and all that.**

** 3) This is a romance story, but there's also a lot of action that's going to be happening in here. So, if you're a romancer, don't worry, I got your back. And action-buffs I've got a whole lot written down already, so don't think that the last chapter is the only action-y stuff you're gonna see. Just be patient, got the scenes all here (taps head), just gotta jot 'em down.**

chiv-id: Phew, just to get those things off my chest. Now, as usual, please **review**! Your guys' feedback is important to me and it helps me to improve my own writing, so don't be shy, drop a review here and I'll check up on it. And if you guys are tired of waiting, check out my other stories on my fanfiction profile. I've got Transformers, TMNT, Team Fortress, Jak and Daxter, um...damn, forgets. Also thinking about making perhaps an Enslaved: Odyssey to the West story (a game for XBox 360 that's a modern version of _Journey to the West_ and the Monkey King's quest) and/or a Darksiders story (another game that's about the four Horsemen and the Apocalypse). So many choices...sigh, but I haven't finished one story...what does that say? LOL, well, I'll try and finish one story at least in my lifetime, so I'll see you later on the next story, bye!


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